James Conner, who has overcome Hodgkin’s lymphoma and a knee injury in the previous year, ran for 117 yards and one touchdown and caught a pass for another score.Wide receiver Quadree Henderson, however, inflicted the most damage, gaining 201 all-purpose yards and catching one pass for a touchdown.
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During his weekly press conference Tuesday, Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin said that while the Nittany Lions and Panthers will meet in each of the next four seasons, predicting anything beyond that as far as a renewal of the series ranks as hard, at best.
Their millennial infancy in no way diminishes what was one of college football longest annual match-ups, with those 96 games being played from 1900-2000. Pittsburgh appears to have a slight edge overall with a slightly better defense to rely on (Penn State’s defense could take some time to gel), and the offense for the Nittany Lions still appeared to be working out some kinks.
SCOTT BARNES: Well, rivalries are important for college football and I think that this rivalry and the history of it goes beyond even impacting the state of Pennsylvania.
Four quarters, almost four hours and one well-timed interception by a fifth-year cornerback later, consider the debate over.
The two sides took decidedly different approaches to the query, but in the moments after Pitt’s 42-39 victory at Heinz Field it appeared that something resembling a consensus was reached.
Don’t hold your breath waiting for news about defensive end Evan Schwan, one of two Penn State defensive linemen who left Saturday’s game against Kent State with an apparent leg injury.
“I don’t think they were watching many games at 2, 3 and 4 years old”, Franklin said. Two teams. One age-old competition.
A late first-half Barkley touchdown and an early second-half Barkley touchdown put Penn State within striking distance, but it wasn’t enough.
Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi made it a point in the run-up to Saturday’s renewal after a 15-year hiatus to give his kids a crash course, one that happened to coincide with a rare media blackout that Narduzzi described as necessary to make sure the Panthers didn’t get caught up in any distractions before arguably the program’s most notable nonconference game since September 16, 2000, when Pitt handed Penn State and coach Joe Paterno a 12-0 loss. “I didn’t even know where I was, but my teammates were on me and I knew right there and then, it was over”. “I think we took that more seriously and it translated to the field”.
And dealt Franklin another significant blow in a tenure that is still searching for traction. The Nittany Lions simply made too many mistakes – four turnovers, missed tackles, missed blocking assignments and the miscues on the final possession – and saw their comeback slip away. Two plays later, however, McSorley’s shot at the end zone ended with Lewis’ interception. The Nittany Lions did manage to pile up 354 yards, but that number would have been topped eight times by John Donovan’s offense a season ago. In 2014 he was named ACC Player of the Year after rushing for 1,765 yards and 26 touchdowns. “We started off slow. I’m so happy we got this win”. The ball smacked off Hamilton’s hands and onto the turf instead. There’s a lot of room for him to grow alongside a bevy of talented receivers led by Chris Godwin, and we could see Barkley more heavily featured in the passing game as well. “The first year was definitely an eye opener, but it was nice when he got here – at Chambersburg, with his size, he was just an anomaly”. The defense also made a big stand after a James Conner fumble, holding State to a field goal.
PITT: First-year offensive coordinator Matt Canada’s playbook is deep. A big reason for the stockpile of points came courtesy of the Panthers’ rushing attack.
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Troy Apke is a Penn State safety whose parents were Pitt athletes. Penn State’s special teams has been known to give up a big play in the return game in the past, so look out for Henderson wreaking havoc in the return game on Saturday. They lost the X-and-O fight, evidently surprised by opposing schemes, really for the second straight week.
